Process and apparatus for dehydrating



Nov. 16 1926. 1,606,772

w. s. MORTON PROCESS AND APPARATUS FOR DEHYDRATING Filed March 21, 19223 Sheets-Sheet 1 Nov. 16, 1926. 1,606,772

W. S. MORTON PROCESS AND APPARATUS FOR DEHYDRATING Filed March 21, 19223 Sheets-Sheet 2 gvwemtoz 351 I141, Grimm un ov Nov. 16 1926.

' w. s. MORTON PROCESS AND APPARATUS FOR DEHYDRATING 3 Sheets-Shut 5Filed March 21, 1922 27 51 I, 29 H 56 v 19 37 35 if 9 v 551' ff Z5 X I 15440011 for,

fltto'cmu l Patented Nov. 16, 1926.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WALTER S. MORTON, OF NEW YOB'IL N. Y., ASSIGNOR T0 CHESHIRE KITCHENS,INC., 01? NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF DELAWARE.

I PROCESS AND AIPIPARATUS FOR DEHYDRATING.

Application filed March 21, 1922. Serial No. 545,519.

My invention relates to devices for dehydrating various materials and toa process of dehydrating capable of being carried out by that device.-More particularly my invention relates to apparatus and process foreffecting the dehydration of food products.

I have found from experiments that in dehydrating materials,particularly food products, the dehydration is carried out moreefficiently when the material to be dehydrated exists in relativelysmall particles and is spread out in relatively thin layers.

I have also found that when the dehydrating medium, be it heated or coldair or other gas, is forced through the material to be dehydrated withsufficient rapidity and in such quantity that the particles of thematerial are agitated by the passage of the medium very desirableresults will be obtained.

I have also found that when the dehydrating medium is successively.passed through a series of material supporting partitions which extendacross a passage through which the medium is forced, the rate and-extentof dehydration are susceptible of complete control. A rotationalrearrangement of the partitions through which the medium successivelypasses also assistsin the control of the dehydrating. This rotationalrearrangement may consist in removing the partition with the materialcarried thereby through which the medium first passes and adding apartition containing nondehydrated material as the last partitionthrough which the medium passes, or it may consist in removing the firstpartition through which the medium passes and placing it where themedium will pass through it last. I have also found that it is highlydesirable to weigh the material which is being dehydrated withoutremoving it from the dehydrator and that it is advantageous to continuethe operation of the dehydrating device during the weighing of any givenuantity of material being acted upon t ereby.

It is an object of my invention to provide apparatus and process forsecuring simultaneously or separately various advantages and benefitsabove enumerated.

Further objects and advantages will appear from the followingdescription taken in connection with the accompanyingdrawmgs formingpart thereof and in which,

. Fig. 1 is a front elevation of a dehydrate embodying my invention.

Fig. 2 is a top plan new of the construc-.

tion shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a sectional view on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1 and Fig. 4 1s adetailed view.

Referring to the drawings which show by way of exemplification oneembodiment of my invention it will appear that a power driven fan orblower 1 provides ,for the circulation of the dehydrating medium whichmay be heated or cooled by fluid passing through the coils 2. The mediumis supplied to a conducting chamber 3 which iswire screening, over whichis preferably extended a material 10 of relatively finer mesh which maybe cheese cloth or scrim. Around each frame extends a strip of packingmaterial 11, so that when the frames are placed one upon another and theseries of frames is placed upon the chamber '3 over the opening 4 and incontact with the packing 5 a passage 6 is formed which is comparatlvelyair tight except that it is open at its ends; and this passage has anair tightconnection with the chamber-3, by reason of the packingmaterial 5.

40 hand sections of Fig. 1.

In carrying out my process the material to be dehydrated is reduced tosmall particles if it does not exist in that form and placed in thinlayers upon the partitions 7 carried by the various frames 8. The frameis then weighed and takin into consideration the amount of tare the' nalweight after dehydration can be ascertained from data obtained byprevious experiments. The ma- 1 terial isspread out in thin layers onthe partitions and the frames are placed one upon the other. Thedehydrating medium then passes successively through the partitions andthe material thereon as it issues from the chamber 3 through theopenings A. It is passed with such rapidity that the material isagitated and the medium acts upon allsurfaces of the particles. In orderthat the extent of dehydration may be ascertained I have provided doors12. supported from a member 13 extending across each 0 ening 4. andswinging up lnto contact with t e packing 14 whic surrounds the opening4 which is thus divided into two I parts. The said doors are closed whenit is desired to ascertain the extent of dehydration. These doors willcut off the flow of the dehydrating medium and they are both closed fromthe front of the dehydrator by pulling upon the ropes 15 and 16. Therope 17 may be used for opening one of the doors after which the otherwill ordinarily open bygravity, when its retaining rope is unfastened,due to the fact that the force of the dehydrating medium finds an outletthrough the door already open. The ropes 15 and 16 are fastened upon thecleats 18 when the doors are closed. These cleats are shown,respectively, in the left and right Vertical frame members 19 extendupwardly from the corners of each opening 4 and rods 20 slide upon thembeing guided by staples or eyes 21, the lower end of each rod 20 isprovided with projection 22 and the upper end is provided with a similarprojection 23 turned 45 from the projection 22. Links 24 connectedrespectively to the projections 23' are joined by a lever 25 secured toa rod 26 0 which passes from the front of each section of the hydratorto the back so that the rods 20 at both front and back will besimultaneously operated. It will be apparent that .when the projections22 are brought to the proper level while they project outwardly 7 justbelow handles 8 of the frame next to the bottom and then the bottom ofthe lever 254is swung to the right to swing the projections 22 in underthe handles 8' of the frame next to the bottom and the cord 31 is drawndown further to raise the frames which formerly rested upon the bottomframe. The bottom frame may be then removed for weighing to ascertainthe degree of dehydration or it may be placed upon the top of the seriesof frames to carry out a rotational rearrangement of the frames. Inorder to avoid removing the bottom frame for weighing I provide rods 30on each side of each passage 6 which are guided by vertical members 31positioned intermediate the corner posts 19 andwhich have arms 32projecting beneath the sides of the bottom frame. To the'top of rods 30are connected c0rds 33 which are attached to the arms 34 which arepivoted upon the rod 35 and brought together at 36. A scale 37 isattached at the junction 36 and has attached to its movable member acord 38. It will now be apparent that after the upper frames are liftedoff a pull on the cord 38, extensive enough to lift the'bottom frameupon the arms 32, will indicate upon the scale 37 the weight of thebottom frame and its contents. From data previously ascertained thedegree or completion of the dehydration of the material on that framebecomes known.

If the dehydration is complete the bottom frame is removed, the seriesof frames lowcred down over the opening 4 and the top frame whichpreferably contains no material but merely acts as a cover to keep thematerial from being blown out, is removed and a frame containingnondehydrated material is placed upon .the top of the. series afterwhich the cover is replaced. It will be apparent from the foregoing thatI have provided means for selectively lifting up different numbers offrames for the replacement or rotational rearrangement of those framesor for the weighing while in position on the dehydrator of one or moreof the frames. After a series of frames has been rearranged and restoredto position the doors 12 are opened and the dehydrating processcontinued. One section being rearranged at a time, it will be apparentthatthe operation of the dehydrator is continuous.

While I have described one embodiment of my invention in great detail, Ido not means for providing an air-tight closure for said opening.

2. In a dehydrator, a conducting chamber for the dehydrating medium andprovided withan opening, a series of frames arranged over sa1d openingwhich are provided with foraminated partitions for supportingthematerial to be dehydrated, and means for roviding an air-tightclosure for said openmg, art of said means being operable from the outof the dehydrator.

3. In a dehydrator, aconducting chamber for the dehydrating medium andprovided with an opening, a series of frames arranged over said openingwhich are provided with foraminated partitions for supporting thematerial to be dehydrated, and means for providing an air-tight closurefor said open- 1ng, said means including a door which may be opened orclosed by a rope projecting through the front of the dehydrator.

4. In a dehydrator, a conducting cham-' her for the dehydrating mediumand provided with an opening, a series of frames arranged over saidopening certain of which are provided with foraminated partitions forsupporting the material to be dehydrated, each of said frames adapted toform sealed joints with its adjacent frames, and an air tight closurefor said opening including a door which may be operated by a ropeprojecting through the front of the dehy drator.

5. In a dehydrator, a conducting chamber for the dehydrating medium andprovided with an opening, a series of frames arranged over said openingcertain of which are provided with foraminated partitions for supportingthe material to be dehydrated and means whereby a frame and its contentsmay be weighed without removal from the dehydrator.

6. In a dehydrator, a conducting chamber frames arranged over saidopenings and provided with removable foraminated partitions forsupporting the material to be dehydrated, each of said frames adapted toform sealed joints with its adjoining frames, and means for closing saidopenings separately to permit continuous operation.

8. In a dehydrator, a conducting chamber for the dehydrating medium andprovided with a plurality of openings, a series of frames arranged oversaid openings and provided with removable foraminated partitions forsupporting the material to be dehydrated, each of said frames adapted toform sealed joints with its adjoining frames, and means for closing saidopenings separately to permit rearrangement of the frames over either ofsaid openings.

9. In a dehydrator, a conductin chamber for the dehydrating medium anprovided with a plurality of openings, a series of frames arranged oversaid openings and provided with removable foraminated partitionsfor-supporting the material to be dehydrated, each of said framesadapted to form sealed joints with its adjoining frames, and means forproviding air-tight closures for said openings, said means includingdoors which may be opened or closed from in front of the dehydrator.

10. In a dehydrator, a conductingchamher for the dehydrating medium andprovided with an opening, foraminated partitions dividing said openinginto a plurality of relatively broad and shallow compartments, and meansfor supplying a dehydrating medium to said opening and successive- 1ythrough said partitions with sufficient force and quantity to agitatesmall particles of material to be dehydrated supported upon saidpartitions, and doors for cutting off the supply of the dehydratingmedium which are operated from in front of the dehydrator. Y

11. The process of dehydrating consisting in reducing the material to bedehydrated to small particles, arranging the material in a thin layerand forcing a dehydrating medium through said thin layer of materialwith suflicient rapidity to agitate said particles to expose them on allsides to said dehydrating medium.

-12. The process of dehydrating consisting in aranging in a plurality ofthin layers material to be dehydrated in small particles, passing adehydrating medium successively through said layers with suflicientforce to agitate said particles and rearranging said layers in rotation.

13. The process of dehydrating consisting in arranging in a plurality.of thin layers material to be dehydrated in small particles, passing adehydrating'medium successively through said layers with sufficientforce to agitate said particles and adding layers of undehydratedmaterial as the last layer to be acted upon by the medium as layersfirst acted upon by the medium are removed upon completion ofdehydration. N

14. In a dehydrator, means for supplyin a dehydrating medium to apassage, said passage formed by means of ,a series of removable frameshaving foraminated partitions in said frames, single means to raise andhold a determinable number of said 10 frames, and means for weighing theremaining frame or frames.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification.

WALTER S. MORTON.

